- A year after being traded away by the Phillies, Cliff Lee is headed back to Philadelphia.A person familiar with the deal tells the Associated

EDISON - - A year after being traded away by the Phillies, Cliff Lee is headed back to Philadelphia.

A person familiar with the deal tells the Associated Press the free-agent pitcher has reached a preliminary agreement on a $100 million, five-year contract with the Phillies. The agreement is subject to the 32-year-old left-hander passing a physical.

Lee passed up an extra $50 million from the New York Yankees, who, along with the Texas Rangers, had been considered the front-runners for his services.

"It's refreshing to see somebody turn down the money and went somewhere he was happy to be, instead of just going for a big pay day," said Phillies fan and Middlesex resident Jim Morgan.

After helping the defending champion Phillies reach the 2009 World Series, Lee was sent to the Seattle Mariners in a four-team, nine-player trade last Dec. 16 that brought Roy Halladay to Philadelphia. The Mariners later shipped him to Texas, where he helped pitch the Rangers to their first World Series.